potassiu m status of indian soils: need for rethinking in
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Potassium Status of Indian soils: Need for Rethinking in Research,
Recommendation and Policy
Article in International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences · December 2017
DOI: 10.20546/ijcmas.2017.612.171
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Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
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Review Article https://doi.org/10.20546/ijcmas.2017.612.171
Potassium Status of Indian soils: Need for Rethinking in Research,
Recommendation and Policy
V. Ramamurthy1*
, L.G.K. Naidu1, G. Ravindra Chary
3, D. Mamatha
1 and S.K. Singh
2
1ICAR-National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Regional Centre,
Hebbal, Bangalore-56002, India 2ICAR-National Bureau of Soil Survey and Land Use Planning, Shankanagar P.O.,
Nagpur, 440033, India 3ICAR-Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Santoshnagar,
Hyderabad, 500 059, Telangana, India *Corresponding author
A B S T R A C T
Introduction
Potassium (K) is third most important plant
nutrient, vital to many plant processes owing
to its requirement for activation of at least 60
different enzymes involved in plant growth,
important for osmoregulation, cation-anion
balance, protein synthesis, water balance,
reducing lodging, imparting disease resistance
and improving quality and shelf life of crop
produce. Nutrient K is less mobile in soils
because of the strong affinity with exchange
sites of clays. Large rates of K uptake can be
attributed to its high mobility due to the large
permeability of cell membranes to K-ions,
which arise from the occurrence of a range of
highly K selective, low and high affinity ion
channels and transporters. The large K uptake
rate achieved by roots result in a steep
depletion of solution K in the rhizosphere. It
has been well established that a significant
proportion of plant needs of K are met from
non-exchangeable fraction of soil K
(Sreenivasa Rao et al., 2010; 2014).
International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 6 Number 12 (2017) pp. 1529-1540 Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com
Growing population and its need pressurize Indian agriculture to produce more from
shrinking arable land. Balanced nutrition plays a key role in enhancing the productivity of
crops and sustainability of production systems. Potassium is third most important plant
nutrient. Recent studies showed declining status of K in majority of the soils in India. High
crop K removal than K addition by farmers and imbalanced use of NPK fertilizers
contributed to large-scale K mining and K deficiency in soils and crops. K fertility
depletion observed in all soil types. Widespread K deficiency was identified in rice-wheat
system of Indo-Gangetic plains, horticultural, plantation, ornamental, aromatic and avenue
plants. The current fertilizer recommendations are obsolete, very much generalized
without considering the soil types, hence need revision and revalidation. Site-specific
fertilizer recommendations, if followed can minimize the fertility K depletion and maintain
productivity and sustainability and also economize the fertilizer cost. Awareness on K use
by farmers needs immediate action.
K e y w o r d s
K status, Indian soils, Fertilizer
misapplication, Site-
specific K recommendation,
Policy initiatives.
Accepted:
12 October 2017
Available Online:
10 December 2017
Article Info
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
1530
Exchangeable K and non-exchangeable K can
thereby significantly be depleted and
contribute to a substantial proportion of plant
uptake. Agronomically, the demand for K
largely varies with plant species and cultivars
and productivity. The large portion of K
uptake essentially occurs during the
vegetative stage and can reach values of10
kg/ha/day and above. In India, until 1980's,
potassium application did not receive much
attention because of general belief that Indian
soils were rich in potassium and a profitable
response to applied K had not always been
observed so as to warrant blanket application
(Ghosh and Hasan, 1976). The fertilizer K use
and fertilizer K consumption reached
maximum peak in 2010-11 from 29000 t and
0.19 kg per in 1960-61 to 3514000 t in 2010-
11and 18.0 kg per ha, respectively (Table 1).
However, total fertilizer nutrient consumption
is increased especially N and P but the
consumption of K fertilizers declined (Table
1), which lead to wide gap in NPK ratio
leading to mining of soil K and imbalance
nutrition. In this article an attempt has been
made to review the past and recent
information on K status of Indian soils.
K status - scenario at country level
Available K map prepared in 1969 showed
that K availability was low in 20 per cent
districts, medium in 52 per cent and high in
28 per cent (Ramamurthy and Bajaj, 1969).
Seven years later, Ghosh and Hasan (1976)
summarized the soil test results of 4.5 million
samples and observed that soils in 20 per cent
districts (63 districts) were low, 42 per cent
(130) were medium and 38 per cent (117)
were high in available K. States like Gujarat,
Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan
were rated high in K status. Andhra Pradesh,
Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka, Kerala,
Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and
West Bengal states showed maximum area
under medium K status (Table 2). Assam,
Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir,
Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Pondicherry
and Uttar Pradesh (U.P.) states recorded more
area under low K status. A comparison of the
past two evaluations indicated that K status of
soils in more than 40 districts of 10 states had
made an upward shift (high K status), even
though actual potassium use during this
period was negligible. Based on 3.65 million
soil samples analyzed between 1997 to 1999
(Motsari, 2002) (Table 2) and based on 11
million soil samples (Hasan and Tiwari,
2002), the considerable area under low
potassium status was observed in the states of
Tripura and Jammu & Kashmir, medium in
Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana,
Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Meghalaya,
Mizoram, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Uttar
Pradesh (U.P.) and West Bengal while high in
Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu
(Naidu et al., 2010 and Naidu et al., , 2011).
The general trend indicated that K status in
Indian soils had been sliding from medium to
high (in year 1976) to medium to low (in year
2002). Similar trend of change in available K
was reported in some of the bench mark soils
spread in different states (Bansal et al., 2002;
Sekhon, 1999).
Recent K status - at regional and micro
level
Soil nutrient mapping had been gaining more
importance in different states and among the
farming community too. In this direction,
central and state R&D departments had taken
up soil analysis in extensive areas and the
recent K status is presented below.
Northern region
The recent K status of 2003 in 126 districts in
Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) indicated that
Meerut, Shajanpur, Rampur, Bijnor, Aligarh
and Mainpuri districts of Uttar Pradesh
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
1531
showed low to medium in K status, Faizabad,
Gazipur, Siddarthnagar of Uttar Pradesh,
Hoshiarpur, Kaprthula, Moga, Ludhiana,
Mukatsar of Punjab, Ambala, Sonepat,
Faridabad, Hisar, Sirsa, Kurukshetra of
Haryana and Gorakhpur, Padrona, Mirzapur
of Uttar Pradesh (Sharma, 2003). At district
level, in Haryana, the K status in Panchkula
district was rated as low to medium, Ambala,
Gurgaon, Faridabad, Rewari and
Mahendragarh districts were medium to low,
Yamuna Nagar, Kurukshetra, Bhiwani and
Jhajjar districts were medium to high while
Kaithal, Fatehabad, Sirsa, Hisar, Jind, Panipat
and Karnal were high.
Eastern region
About 70 percent of the Jharkhand state was
rated medium to high in K status (Sarkar et
al., 2007). Sitamadi, Madhuban, Gopalgunj of
Bihar and Birbhum in West Bengal showed
medium to low, Aurangabad in Bihar and
West Dinjapur and Malda in West Bengal
showed medium to high and Mursidabad,
Midanapur and 24 Parganas-north of West
Bengal showed high K status (Sharma, 2003).
Sarkar et al., (2010) observed low to medium
and medium to low in various districts in
West Bengal.
North-East region
In Assam, Chirang, Goalpara, Kokrajhar
districts were rated as medium to low (Baruah
et al., 2009). In Tripura, three out of four
districts showed medium to low K status
(Sarkar et al., 2010).
Southern region
During 1970s, in Karnataka, about 17, 50 and
33 per cent of the total cropped area recorded
low, medium and high K status, respectively.
The subsequent soil test information indicated
only 61 per cent of total soil samples analyzed
were rated as high in K status (Motsari,
2002). Available K status map of Karnataka
(Shivaprasad et al., 1995) at 10-km grid
interval showed that small pockets in
Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Kodagu,
Chikmagalur, Shimoga and Bijapur districts
were low in available K while major parts of
Kolar, Bangalore, Tumkur, Mandya, Mysore,
Kodagu, Dakshina Kannada, Chikmagalur,
Shimoga, Uttar Kannada, Belgaum and
northwestern parts of Bijapur, southern parts
of Dharwad and Gulbarga districts were
medium in K status. At sub-district level
(taluka) in Karnataka the K status declined
either from high to medium or medium to low
(Table 3). Recent studies indicated that K
status improved from low to medium in
Sringeri, Bijapur, Athani and Khanapur taluks
might be due to regular K application to cash
crops like sugarcane and plantation crops. The
dominant soils that showed major decline in
K status were red, lateritic and shallow black
soils (Shivaprasad et al., 1995). During 2010-
11, the analysis of surface soil samples of
major land use types in Mysore, Shimoga,
Hassan, Bijapur, Raichur, Haveri, Belagaum,
Bagalkote, Chikkaballapur and Kolar districts
indicated that K status was medium (Table 3)
when compared to that of the year 2002
(Hasan and Tiwari, 2002). Similar exercise in
H.D.Kote, Hunsur, Periyapatna and Mysore
taluks of Mysore district during 2011
indicated that the available K status as
compared to the year 2004, (Shetty et al.,
2008), the K status of all the taluks (sub-
district level) showed decline in K status.
In Andhra Pradesh, the trends in K status
during the period 1975 to 1996 indicated that
Guntur, Krishna, Prakasham, Srikakulam,
Visakhapatnam, Anantapur, Chittoor,
Kurnool, Mahabubnagar and Medak districts
were rated medium, East Godavari, Nellore
and Nalgonda medium to high and Adilabad,
Kadapa, Khammam and Rangareddy districts
rated high while in 1996, high K status was
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
1532
observed in most of the districts except
Adilabad (medium) (Naidu et al., 2002). The
recent fertility assessment of Medak district
indicated that overall available K status was
rated as medium (54%) to low (43%) (Reddy
et al., 2005). At cadastral level, in watersheds
and research farms of Anantapur and Kadapa
districts of Andhra Pradesh, even in medium
deep and deep black soils, low to medium
status of K was observed (Naidu et al., 2009;
Nair et al., 2003). This indicated that decline
in K availability more pronounced in recent
days than earlier.
In 1976, in Kerala, the K status was medium
in 56 percent area and low in 44 per cent area
while in 1999, the trend indicated 62 percent
area was low and 31 percent under medium
(NBBSS and LUP, 1999). Soil fertility
assessment of Kerala carried out in 2012
indicated 33 percent area was low, 37 percent
medium and 31 percent high (Rajasekharan et
al., 2013). At sub-taluk level, 42 panchyaths
of Palakkad district showed low K status in
eastern and central region while medium in
western region (Kutty et al., 2008). The K
status over a period shifted from medium to
low, even though K fertilizer use was popular
in Kerala. In Puducherry region, the K status
was medium to low while in Karikal region it
was medium to high (Vadivelu et al., 2008).
Western region
At sub- taluka level (Panchayat Samithi), the
soil test information of 0.58 million surface
samples from 14 districts in Rajasthan during
1990 to 2000 revealed that 97 per cent of the
Panchayath Samities showed high available K
(Kanthaliya et al., 2003).
K balance sheet in diverse soil regions
The nutrient addition, removal, balance and
nutrient mining index for India and for
different states covering alluvial, black, red,
lateritic and desertic soil regions indicated
that K removal by crops far exceeded than the
K addition through fertilizers. At national
level, the K depletion was about 10.2 m t/year
and mining index for K was 8.0. In all the soil
regions, K balance was negative. The K
mining index was highest in Rajasthan
(152.7) followed by Haryana (105.7) Punjab
(40.7), Madhya Pradesh (35.2) and least in
Kerala (2.01) and Karnataka (2.79) which
indicated K depletion in all soil types (Table
4).
Fertilizer misapplication leads to K
depletion
Misapplication of nutrients had been defined
as excess or under application of nutrients
required to soil and crops. The amount of N, P
and K fertilizers applied over period in Indian
agriculture indicated that K fertilizers were
applied in much lower dose with wide ratios
of NPK. The fertilizer consumption of N
increased from 1.4 to 85 kg/ha from 1960 to
2010 whereas K consumption increased from
0.2 to 18 kg/ha during the same period (Table
1). The K application was still below i.e. 10
kg in major food grain producing states
(Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh. etc.). The
imbalanced use of NPK fertilizers was due to
dual pricing policy of national government.
The price of N and P fertilizers was almost
maintained steadily for a long period where as
the cost of K fertilizers had increased
considerably. Besides this, easy access and
availability of N and P fertilizers in the local
markets and unawareness of importance and
benefits of K application in crops by farmers
since the effect of applied K would be visible
at or after maturity stage. Further, the
inadequate application of K fertilizers might
be due to lack of crop response to applied K
fertilizers in some situations even on low K
status soils but in contrast significant
responses to applied K were also recorded in
soils with high K status.
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
1533
Table.1 Fertilizer consumption in India
Fertilizer consumption
(000 t)
Fertilizer consumption
(kg/ha)
Ratio of N: P:
K
N P2O5 K2O N P2O5 K2O
1960-61 210 53 29 1.39 0.35 0.19 7.3:1.8:1.0
1970-71 1487 462 228 8.92 3.26 1.43 6.3:2.2:1.0
1980-81 3678 1214 624 21.3 7.00 3.60 5.9:1.9:1.0
1990-91 7997 3222 1360 43.1 17.3 7.20 6.0:2.4:1.0
2000-01 10920 4215 1567 58.9 22.8 8.50 7.0:2.7:1.0
2010-11 16558 8050 3514 84.9 41.3 18.00 4.7:2.3:1.0
2015-16 17372 6979 2401 89.1 35.8 12.3 7.5:3.0:1.0
[Source: Department of Agriculture and Cooperation (DAC)]
Table.2 K status in different states over period
State Percentage distribution of samples in different fertility
classes
1976 2002
Low Medium High Low Medium High
Andhra Pradesh 9.5 62.0 28.5 9 30 61
Arunachal Pradesh - 100 - 9 46 45
Assam 66 34 - 30 46 34
Bihar - 71.5 28.5 - - -
Gujarat - - 100 5 30 65
Haryana - 18 82 27 41 32
Himachal Pradesh 86 36 28 45 47 8
J & K 57 43 - 62 32 6
Karnataka 17 50 33 7 32 61
Kerala 44 56 - 29 44 27
Madhya Pradesh 7 21 72 10 32 58
Maharashtra - 52 48 8 18 74
Meghalaya 100 - - 34 63 3
Mizoram 100 - - 10 73 17
Orissa 15 85 - 33 41 26
Pondicherry 100 - - 2 97 1
Punjab - 58 42 6 48 46
Rajasthan - 26 74 - - -
Tamil Nadu - 54 46 12 36 52
Tripura 100 - - 54 22 24
Uttar Pradesh 58 34 8 12 55 33
West Bengal 13 80 7 30 36 34 (Source: Ghosh and Hassan, 1976; Naidu et al., 2002)
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
1534
Table.3 Long term fertility changes in available K status in Karnataka soils
District Taluks Soil type Potassium Fertility Status
1971 1980 1985 1995 2010
Bangalore Hoskote Lateritic Soils M M M L L
Belgaum Khanapur
Athani
Belgaum
Shallow red soils
Shallow red soils
Lateritic soils
M
H
M
M
H
H
M
M
M
L
L
L
M
M
L
Bellary Kudligi Shallow red soils H M M M L
Bijapur Bijapur
Indi
Shallow black soils
Shallow black soils
M
M
M
H
-
-
L
L
M
L
Chickmangalur Sringeri Lateritic soils M M M L M
Dharwar Shirhatti Shallow red soils M M M L L
Gulbarga Shapur Shallow red soils H H - M -
Kodagu Mercara
Virajpet
Lateritic soils
Lateritic soils
M
M
M
M
M
M
L
L
-
-
Dakshina
Kannada
Bantwal
Mangalore
Puttur
Udupi
Lateritic soils
Lateritic soils
Lateritic soils
Lateritic soils
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
M
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
L
-
-
-
L
Uttara
Kannada
Honnavar
Siddapur
Lateritic soils
Lateritic soils
M
M
M
L
L
L
L
L
-
- (Source: Rao , 1971; Karnataka Sta te Depar tment of Agricul ture (KSDA), Bookle t , 1980; Singh
et al . , 2007)
Table.4 K balance sheet in different states
Alluvial Soils
State Nutrients (000 t)
Addition (A)
Removal
(R)
Balance Mining index
(R/A)
Source
Punjab 18.7 763.5 -744.8 40.7 Aulakh and Behl, 2001
UP 113.6 1777.2 -1663.6 15.6 Yadav et al., 2001
Haryana 4.6 490.1 -485.5 105.7 Kumar et al., 2001
Black soils
Maharashtra 196.9 2095.9 -1899.1 10.6 Patil et al., 2001
Madhya
Pradesh
24.1 848.8 -824.7 35.2 Swarup et al., 2001
Red soils
Karnataka 216.1 603.6 -387.5 2.8 Hegde and Sudhakar
Babu, 2001
Lateritic Soils
Kerala 87.3 175.6 -88.3 2.0 John et al., 2001
Desertic Soils
Rajasthan 7.0 1068.0 1061.1 152.7 Gupta, 2001
All India 1454.2 11656.5 -10202.3 8.0
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
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Table.5 Potash use pattern by farmers in different crops and states
State District Crop K dose (kg/ha)
Recommended Farmer applied K
A.P. Nellore Paddy 40 60
Punjab IGP region Paddy 30 0
Haryana IGP region Paddy 60 0
U.P. IGP region Paddy 60 2.2
Bihar IGP region Paddy 40 9.8
West Bengal IGP region Paddy 40 32.7
Punjab IGP region Wheat 30 0
Haryana IGP region Wheat 60 0
U.P IGP region Wheat 40 2.1
Bihar IGP region Wheat 40 11.6
West Bengal IGP region Wheat 70 27.6
Rajasthan Bhasatpur Rape seed 20 0
M.P. Morena Rape seed 20 0
Orissa Sambalpur Rape seed 20 15
Assam Nagoan Rape seed 15 0.4
Tamil Nadu Thiruvannamalai Groundnut 45 23.3
Karnataka Kolar Groundnut 25 10.5
Karnataka Tumkur Groundnut 25 11.4
A.P. Ananthapur
Kurnool
Vizianagaram
Groundnut
Groundnut
Groundnut
20
20
20
5.3
4.5
0
Gujarat Junagadh
Rajkot
Groundnut
Groundnut
0
0
0
0
Karnataka Belgaum Sugarcane 187.5 20.3
Maharashtra Nagpur
Nagpur
Nanded
Amravati
Yavarmal
Jalgaon
Cotton
Soybean
Cotton
Cotton
Cotton
Cotton
50
0
50
50
50
50
10
0
19.3
8.8
8.9
20.9
Karnataka Dharwad Cotton 25 0.9
Rec – Recommended dose, F.P- Farmers practice
(Source: Kumar et al., 2001; Challa, 2002).
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
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Table.6 Potash misapplication in various crops
District
(State)
Crop Soils Recommended practice Farmers practice
Av.
Yield
(q/ha)
K
(Kg/ha)
STCR
(Kg/ha)
Misapplicati
on (kg/ha)
Av.
Yield
(q/ha)
K
(Kg/ha)
STCR
(Kg/ha)
Misapplication
(kg/ha)
Nellore (AP) Paddy Red coastal clay 40.0 40 34 +6 35.0 60 25 +35
Shrink swell (cal)
clay
45.0 40 36 +4 40.5 60 28 +32
Nagpur
(Maharashtra)
Cotton Shrink-swell clay
(shallow)
3.7 50 49 +1 2.6 10 33 -23
Shrink-swell clay
(medium deep)
7.4 50 102 -52 5.0 10 68 -58
Shrink-swell clay
(deep)
15.2 50 207 -157 10.0 10 132 -122
Nagpur
(Maharashtra)
Soybean Shrink-swell clay
(shallow)
8.7 0 8 -8 6.0 0 0 0
Shrink-swell clay
(medium deep)
13.0 0 25 -25 9.0 0 9 -9
Shrink-swell clay
(deep)
16.0 0 0 0 11.8 0 0 0
Belgaum
(Karnataka)
Sugar
cane
Shrink-swell clay 1080.0 187.5 229 -41.5 825.0 203 175 +28
Red gravelly clay 1050.0 187.5 223 -35.5 920.0 203 195 +8
Ludhina
(Punjab)
Wheat Coarse loamy 56.2 30 75 -45 55.0 35 72 -37
Fine loamy 59.2 30 55 -25 60.0 35 57 -22
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
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Fertilizer use by farmers in various crops
cultivated across states showed wide
variations in amount of nutrient K use, crop to
crop and region to region.
Farmers did not apply recommended K except
sugarcane (Table 5). Farmers seldom apply K
in oilseed and pulse crops under rainfed
situation.
Over all, the minimal or no K application over
years led to continuous K depletion in soils.
Suboptimal K recommendation vis-a-vis K
depletion
The status and application scenario of K had
been contrast to that of N and P. In general,
the recommended K was lower than the
required due to the general belief that Indian
soils were rich in available K.
In cotton, soybean, sugarcane and wheat, the
recommended K and application of K by
farmers was sub optimal except in sugarcane
where farmers had been applying K slightly
more than the required (8 to 28 kg/ha) in
Belgaum region of Karnataka (Table 6).
In soybean, even there was no K
recommendation and further, the farmers
were also ignorant about K application
leading to continuous K mining in black soils
(Table 6). Further, in case of many rainfed
crops such as groundnut, finger millet, pearl
millet, chickpea and maize, K
recommendation was missing in regional
recommendations which led to K depletion by
imbalanced application. The twin problems of
suboptimal fertilizer recommendations and K
misapplication by farmers lead to continuous
K depletion. The present K recommendations
for various crops in different states were
developed in late 1970s which need revision
and revalidation to bridge the gap between K
application and crop removal.
Factors affecting potash consumption in
India
In India, potash consumption depends mainly
on three factors viz., maximum retail prices
fixed by government, availability of potash
based on import and availability of potash
carrying complexes in the region. With
launching of complex fertilizers in 1970s,
significant improvement in the use of
complex fertilizers in southern India was
observed but, in major areas of northern India,
it is meager. During last one and half decade,
urea availability was satisfactory, but the
same was not the case with other fertilizer
products. Lack of availability of potash and
potash carrying complexes is one of the
reasons for imbalanced NPK ratio in northern
India. Further, during last decade, there is no
addition to manufacturing capacities of
complex fertilizers in the country and
production of complexes is more or less
stagnant.
Tendency of the Indian farmer is to buy the
fertilizer, whichever is available in the
market. Seriousness on potash application
was lacking due to lack of farmers' education
and awareness. Farmers tend to overlook the
benefits of K application because; the effect
of nutrient application on plants is visible
only at maturity stage in the form of
improvement in size, shape, colour and
quality of the produce. In contrast, the effect
of nitrogen and phosphorus is seen soon after
the time of application.
Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS) - a policy
initiative for K application
In the context of Nation’s food security, the
declining response of agricultural productivity
to increased fertilizer usage in the country and
to ensure the balanced application of
fertilizers, the Government of India
introduced the Nutrient Based Subsidy (NBS)
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
1538
Policy with effect from 1st
April 2010 for
decontrolled P and K fertilizers which
enabled to provide murate of potash, NPKS
complexes along with other fertilizers to the
farmers at subsidized rates based on the
nutrients (N, P, K & S) contained in these
fertilizers (http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.
aspx? relid=63723), further the policy also
allowed import of complex fertilizers. It was
observed that post implementation of NBS in
P & K sector, in the first year the subsidy
payout reduced but the increase in
international prices resulted in increase in
subsidy payout as well as increase in retail
price. Subsidized fertilizers can also be used
as inputs for customized fertilizers. The NBS
policy has also allowed import of complex
fertilizers which is a beneficial step. These
major steps will help in promoting balanced
use of fertilizers and in improving fertilizer
availability in different parts of the country.
The other government programmes initiated
to restore soil health are like Bhoo Chetan, is
mainly focusing on micronutrient supplement.
In such schemes, if K is also included along
with micro and secondary nutrients based on
site specific soil test, which help in
maintenance of soil health and productivity.
Issue of Soil Health Card (SHC) to each
farmer is another programme initiated in
Tamil Nadu and Kerala, where in SHC
indicates the soil nutrient status, fertilizer
application requirement for different crops to
be grown by a farmer. It forms a part of land
use planning at farm level. Farmer, soil and
eco-friendly nutrient subsidy policies help in
reducing the misapplication of nutrients and
also cost of production.
The available K status in Indian soils over
four decades, from national to cadastral level,
showed a gradual decline in K status with
more depletion in red, lateritic and shallow
black soils. Recent isolated studies indicated
that the K status declined to medium to low
even in medium deep and deep black soils.
These trends were due to low K application
by the farmers, imbalanced use of NPK
fertilizers, misapplication and blanket K
recommendations leading to wide spread K
deficiency in soils and crops. Also, the
present fertilizer recommendations, which
were of four decades old and still being
followed in certain pockets, warrants revision
and revalidation. Site-specific fertilizer
recommendations, if followed can minimize
the fertility K depletion and maintain
productivity and sustainability and also
economize the fertilizer cost. With more
policy support like NBS which though
encouraging, more farmer, soil and
ecofriendly action plans can be drawn and
implemented.
Future research needs
Need to harmonize data on K status and
develop a new K fertility map for the country
with revised rating limits.
Intensive research, both at national and state
level, based on the benchmark soils and soil
types on differential response of crops to
applied K fertilizers, to make
recommendations considering soil K pools.
Fertilizer recommendations to be revised and
revalidated based on soil-crop-climatic
conditions.
Research efforts needed to increase K use
efficiency in crops and its recycling to reduce
the K loss from the soil-crop system
Large scale on-farm demonstrations to
sensitize the farmers on the need for K
application, particularly in K deficient
regions, in convergence with the ongoing
national programmes like Rashtriya Krishi
Vikas Yojana, National Food Security
Mission etc.
Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci (2017) 6(12): 1529-1540
1539
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How to cite this article:
Ramamurthy, V., L.G.K. Naidu, G. Ravindra Chary, D. Mamatha and Singh, S.K. 2017.
Potassium Status of Indian Soils: Need for Rethinking in Research, Recommendation and
Policy. Int.J.Curr.Microbiol.App.Sci. 6(12): 1529-1540.
doi: https://doi.org/10.20546/ijcmas.2017.612.171
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